Label printer



Sept. 21, 1954 r F J, ANKER ET AL 2,689,525

LABEL PRINTER 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed May 16, 1950 INVENTORS fim/VK d. ANKER WALTER L. SCHOTT a M ATTORNEYS.

Sept. 21, 1954 F. .J. ANKER ET AL 2,689,525

LABEL PRINTER Filed May 16, 1950 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTORS v & fkA/wr d. ANKER WALTER L. ficnorr i 6 L ATTORNEYS.

Patented Sept. 21 1954 OFFICE LABEL PRINTER Frank J. Anker, Santa Monica, and Walter L. Schott, Beverly Hills, Calif.

Application May I6, 1950, Serial No. 162,224

4 Claims. 1

Thepresent' invention relates to a printing machine especially useful in printing information on a moving strip which is fed through the machine and severed thereby to produce individually printed labels. In large stores many labels or price tags are required in connection with the goods being merchandised. The labels normally carry a standard imprint of the stores name or trade-mark and, addition, an individual imprint to identify the several items of merchandise. These items may vary from time to time, and the problem is presented of imprinting the labels accordingly. For purposes of appearance, these labels or price tage are printed. However, unless these price tags or labels are printed in large quantities, the price per unit isrelatively high. On the other hand, when large quantities of labels or price tags are printed, a great deal of money is invested in the labels or price tags themselves, particularly when, for example, there may be a label or price tag for a given commodity such as, for example, a can of tomatoes at different prices at which it is thought such a can would sell at different times over a. period of months.

It is thereforean object of. the present invention to provide an improved printing machine characterized by its simplicity, smallness and inexpensiveness for use in individual stores, whereby the Storekeeper may print his labels or price tags as required.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved printing machine of this character having as important features thereof improved means whereby the machine may be conveniently adjusted to print and out different sized labels or price tags.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a printing machine of this character which has a printing plate associated with an inking pad, a paper feeding mechanism and a paper cutting mechanism, there being provided independent means whereby the printing platform, pad, paper feeding and paper cutting mechanisms may be adjusted in a simple and expeditious manner.

The features of the present invention which are believed to be novel are set forth with particularity in the appended claims. This invention itself, both as to its organization and manner of operation, together with further objects and advantages thereof, may be best understood by reference to the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a view in side elevation, partly in section, of a printing machine embodying features of the present invention,

Figure 2 is a sectional view taken. substantially on the line 2-2. of Figure 5,

Figure 3 is a view in elevation of. a portion of the paper cutting mechanism taken substantially on the line 3-3. indicated in. Figure 5-, but with the mechanism in a different operating position,

Figure 4. is a view similar to Figure 22 but with the inking plate in a different position,

Figures 5- and 6 are sectional views taken substantially onthe. lines 5-5 and 66 of Figure 1,

Figure 7 is a perspective View of a portion. of. the paper cutting mechanism,

Figure 8. is a plan view of the paper supplied to the machine and indicates the region at which the paper, after printing,v is severed,

Figure 9 is a view taken substantially on the line 9-9 of Figure Land.

Figure 10 is a perspective view of the plate holder partly fragmented to show the prongs insortable in the plate to aid in maintaining the same inposition.

The machine functions to intermittently feed paper l0 from. the supply reel It, past the printing station [2' (Figure 1) over the paper driving drum l3, and then to the cutting, station 54, at which successive sections of the paper are severed and fallinto the discharge chute [5.

The power for performing these three functions, namely,v paper feeding, printing and severing, is obtained from the electric driving motor l6, which is mounted on the side I! of a framework. The motor output shaft I8 has mounted thereon a V-pulley [9 as well as an auxiliary knob 20 for manually turning the shaft it when desired, for example, in adjusting various mechanisms in the machine. Belt 22 passing over pulley l 9 serves to drive the pulley 24 mounted on the input shaft 25 of the reduction gear, the housing 27 of which is mounted on the stationary shelf 28 with the two oppositely extending out put shafts 3t; 3| (Figure 5) driving crank members 32, 33, respectively. Each of these cranks 3 2, 33 serves to impart generally a longitudinal movement to corresponding ones of pairs of rods 34', 35 and 3B, 3?. As will be described. in detail hereinafter, the rods 34, 35 actuate the guillotine type of cutting knife 39, and the rods 36, 3'! serve to move the printing plate 40 (Figures 5, 2 and 4) cyclically from its printing position shown in Figures 5 and 2 to a position abutting the inking pad 42., whereby ink may be transferred from the pad 42ontothe paper II).

In addition, the crank 32, upon rotation, im-

parts a reciprocatory movement to the rod (Figures and l) which serves to intermittently drive the paper feeding drum l3 over which the paper It is fed, with the conical shaped and equally spaced circumferential projections 45 projecting through the equally and centrally spaced apertures itA (Figure 8) in the paper Ill.

The paper it as originally supplied may have the name of the store imprinted thereon, such as John Doe 00., and the machine may function to print descriptive material in successive rectangular printed blocks 10B information such as, for example, Tomatoes This printing, of course, is all accomplished at station i2 (Figure 1) by the automatically inked printin plate 49 (Figure 2). Such printing is accomplished when the paper tape or strip I0 is stationary; and, at the same time, the individual printed sections are being severed at station I4 (Figure 1). Since the printing and cutting of the paper tape is accomplished when the tape is stationary, an intermittent movement of the tape Ill is necessitated.

Such intermittent movement of the tape it is produced by the paper feeding mechanism, which includes a pawl and ratchet arrangement 46, All (Figures 1 and 6). The pawl is pivotally mounted on the arm 50 which is pin-connected at any one of the predeterminedly spaced apertures portions El, 53 to one end of the rod 43. This arm 56 is mounted for pivotal movement on the stationary shaft 54 (Figures 1 and 6), which also rotatably supports the drum it and which is affixed, at its other end, in the frame 55.

The ratchet M is adjustably positioned on the end wall of the drum i3 by releasable bolts 56 which extend through adjustment slots in the ratchet member 41, and which are screw threadedly received in such end wall of the drum I3. This adjustment allows changes in the lengthwise position of the printed matter on the labels. The pawl member is constantly urged upwardly against the ratchet member 41 by the coil tension spring 51, havin one of its ends affixed to the arm 5%) and the other one of its ends affixed to the pawl 46. Thus, when and as the rod 43 is reciprocated in response to rotation of the crank member 32, the paper driving drum !3 will be intermittently moved in a counterclockwise direction, as indicated by the arrow 58 in Figure l. The ratchet 4-1 is adjusted to produce movement of the paper after the printing and cutting operations have been accomplished respectively at stations l2 and M (Figure l), as mentioned above. The length of paper moved upon one reciprocation of the rod 43, which corresponds to the distance between printings, may be adjusted as previously indicated by pin-connecting the end of the rod 43 to the arm 5!] at any one of the desired apertured portions 5|, 53. In general, such paper in its travel around the drum it is guided to some extent by the pair of parallelly extending stationary guide rods 88, 89, which, as shown in Figure 6, are supported on stationary arms 98 extending from the stationary frame and serve to maintain the paper against the drum to thereby prevent the drum pins 45 from becoming disengaged from the paper apertured portions IEIA.

At the printing station I 2 the holder 59-, releasably holding the plate M, is alternately moved from its printing position adjacent the adjustable paper platform 60 to its inking position in contact with the inking pad 42, and then returned to its printing position, all during one rotation of the crank 32. The manner in which the plate holder 59 is moved is indicated in Figure l.

Specifically, the holder 59 has a rectangular opening to snugly and releasably receive the plate ii) of elastic material with a thin sheet of backing material 5i disposed between the plate til and holder Est as described hereinafter in connection with Figure 10. This holder 59, as shown in Figures 5 and 2, has a pair of bifurcated arms 63, 64 extending therefrom. A pair of stationary pivot pins E5, 6G is disposed, at all times, within the slotted portion defined by the bifurcated arms '63, fit, respectively, as indicated in Figure 2. These pivot pins 55, fit, each project inwardly from a U-shaped supportin frame ii which is of sheet material and formed at the U-bend thereof to provide a generally rectangular dish MA for frictionally receivin the int; pad 412 with the sheet metal member 53 glued to pad 42 between the pad and the holder, the sheet metal member 68 being conveniently provided with a tab 58A which conveniently extends outwardly to facilitate removal or" the pad 32 with the sheet metal fit which partially embraces such pad. Also, such member 58 may have a plurality of beads or dimples 58B extending outwardly therefrom engaging with corresponding cooperating reentrant portions in dish MA to frictionally and releasably support such assembled pad 42 and strip 653, as a unit, within the dish MA. This U-shaped frame ti, in turn, is bolted to the adjustable frame member 59.

Also passing through the slotted portion of the bifurcated arms 53, as is the rod it, which has its opposite ends passing through the corresponding cam slots "H, l2 and through the lost motion slots 1 3, M in the upper ends of the actuating rods 3'6, 31. The upper ends of these rods 36, 3'! are guided for generally vertical movement by providing, at their upper ends, a pair of projections 55A, 35A and 31A, 37A, which respectively cooperate with the corresponding vertical slots 15, 15 and i6, E6 in opposite legs of the frame Bl.

Thus, upon upward movement of rods 36 in Figure 1, the member In, traveling in the lost motion slot 13 and cam slot H, causes the printing plate 46 to gradually turn, as indicated in Figure 4. The plate holder 59 pivots about the stationary pivot 66 during such movement to such an extent that at the upper end of travel of the rod 36 the printing surface of plate 43 is pressed into contact with the inking pad 42. Upon subsequent downward movement of the rod 35 the plate holder 59 retraces its path, and at the lower end of movement of rod 36 th plate M is pressed into printing engagement with the paper II] resting on the adjustable platform fill.

A feature of the present invention is that the inking pad 42, as well as the printing platform 60, may be adjusted independently of each other. For that purpose, both the printing platform 60 and frame member 69 are pivotally mounted on the stationary axle 1?, which has its opposite ends affixed to the stationary framework. The forward ends of these members 69, 60 may be adjusted in elevation independently of each other upon movement of the corresponding adjustment screws 18, 19. Both of these screws '18, 19 are screw threadedly received in the stationary frame member 80. The bolt 73 passes through an enlarged opening in the member 69, so that the coil compression spring 8| may be adjusted to difierent compressed conditions. On the other hand,

the bolt 19 has its upwardly protruding end engaging the bottom face of the platform 99 and is maintained in locked position by the lock nut 82. It is observed that the spring BI serves not only to maintain the frame 69 in adjusted locked position, but also imparts some resiliency in the printing plate holding structure. This is of importance and absorbs some of the energy of the moving arms 39, 31 and actuated printing holder 59 when and as these members are moving to their lowermost positions, corresponding to engagement of the printing plat 49 with the paper I9.

Thus the paper is initially printed, using the mechanism described above, and then passes over the intermittently driven feeding roller I3 before it passes to the cutting station 19.

Cutting of the paper is accomplished with a mechanism perhaps best seen in Figures 2, '7 and 3. A feature of the cutting mechanism is that it is adjustable to automatically cut off the paper at a predetermined selected position between or at the paper holes 19A (Figure 8), this adjustment being independent of any one of the other adjustments described above.

The plane of movement of the guillotine type of knife 39 is at an angle inclined somewhat with respect to the vertical, as indicated in Figure 2, and serves to cut off successive sections of paper I9, which is fed from the roller I3 into the throat defined by the spaced sheet metal members 85, 89 after being deflected by the stationary deflecting plate 91. The paper guides 85, 89, as well as the cutting knife 39, are mounted on an adjustably positioned subframe which has the general reference numeral 9 I.

This subframe 9I comprises a pair of upstanding parallel arms 92, 93, each of which are pivotally mounted on corresponding circular shoulders 21A, 21B on the gear box 21. These arms 92, 93 have secured thereto the paper guide members 95, 89, it being noted that the screw threaded aperture 34 in Figure 7 is utilized to fasten the paper guide plate 95 (not shown in Figure 7) which cooperates with the plate 89. These pivotally mounted arms 92, 93 have extending upwardly therefrom the arms 95, 96, the upper ends of which are interconnected by the rod 98 which, as shown in Figures 2 and 3, has a screw threaded aperture for receiving the adjustment bolt 99. This adjustment bolt 99 passes through an enlarged opening in the stationary frame member I99 (Figure 2), so that rotation of the bolt 99 results in pivotal adjusted movement of the subframe 9|, which may be maintained in adjusted position upon fastening the lock nut This lock nut I9I cooperates with the nut I92, which forms a seat for one end of the coil compression spring I94, the other end of the spring I94 abutting against the washer I95 which bears against the stationary frame member I99.

The spring I94 thus serves not only as a part of the locking mechanism, but also imparts some resiliency to the pivoted subframe 9| in any one of its predetermined adjusted positions.

The arms 92, 93 also carry upwardly inclined arms I99, I91, respectively, which support a pivot rod I98. Mounted on this rod I98 is a pair of pivotally mounted arms I99, II9 through which the knife actuating rod I II passes. This rod II I pivotally mounts the knife 39 which has a pair of hubs 39A, 39B mounted thereon. Thus, the knife 39 is pivotally mounted on the rod III, but with a coil tension spring II2 having one of its ends affixed to the knife 39 and the other one of its a clockwise direction in Figure 7, with the lower" portion of the knife 39 abutting an edge of the paper guide 89. The paper guide 89 thus serves also as a stop for pivotal movement of the knife 39, which otherwise would exist. The knife 39 is provided with a downwardly extending projection 39C which engages the edge of the guide 86 when the knife is in a raised position, to allow paper to move under the knife 39 for subsequent severing.

It is thus observed that the paper is sheared between the knife 39 and the forward edge of the paper guide 96. In order to withstand the relatively large forces to which the paper guide 86 is subjected, the guide 96 is reinforced by a pair of transversely extending frame members H3, H4 (Figure 2), which are affixed to the side walls or arms 92, 93. The knife 39 is moved upwardly and downwardly as a result of the pivotal movement imparted to shaft III by the pair of rods 34, 35 which have lost motion slots in their upper ends through which the ends of shaft III project. These lost motion slots in the rods 34, 35 are disposed and are of such an extent that the knife 39 is moved downwardly at a time when the intermittently moving paper is stationary and substantially contemporaneous with printing of the paper at station I2. Such downward or cutting movement of the knife 39 99A of arms 95, 96, respectively, Which thus serve the purpose of a stop.

After the paper is severed it drops into the chute or stationary bin I5 formed of sheet metal and fastened to the upper surface of the gear housing 21, as indicated in Figure 1.

It is observed that the longitudinal axis of the output shaft 39 of the gear reduction unit 21 is coaxial with the pivoting axis of the subframe 9I (Figure 7) which carries the movable knife 39, and that the particular region at which the paper is severed is controlled, as mentioned above, upon adjustment of the screw 99. However, it is noted, as explained above, that the particular length of paper severed may be controlled by utilizing any one of the two apertured portions 5I, 53 (Figure 1) in the arm of the paper feeding mechanism.

The plate holder 59, perhaps best seen in Figure 10, allows quick attachment and detachment of the printing plate 49. The holder 59, as seen in Figure 2, is of sheet metal stock and comprises generally an inverted pan or dish with a pair of integrally formed prongs or tongues 299, 29I extending into the dish for insertion in cooperating apertured portions in the plate 49. The other side wall of the holder 59 has mounted thereon a double leaf spring 292 which is fastened, as for example, by means of a rivet 293 at a point intermediate its ends to a side wall of the holder 59, with the ends of such spring 292 projecting through apertures 294, 295 in such side wall for resilient engagement with the printing plate disposed in the holder 59.

In inserting a printing plate 49 in the holder 59, initially the apertured end of such plate is inserted such that the prongs 299, 29I enter such apertured portions. Then the plate is pivoted upwardly about such prongs 299, 29I as a pivot point to bring the opposite end of the printing plate into resilient engagement with the ends of the leaf spring 202, such opposite end of the plate being provided with indented portions to receive the ends of spring 202. The leaf spring 202 thus cooperates with the adjacent end of the printing plate and comprises a detent means for resiliently maintaining the plate in the holder 59. When it is desired to remove the printing plate from the holder 59, the person merely inserts his finger through the finger hole 206 in the base plate 201 of the holder so as to force such plate out of resilient engagement with the leaf spring 202.

While the particular embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that changes and modifications may be made without departing from this invention in its broader aspests and, therefore, the aim in the appended claims is to cover all such changes and modifications as fall within the true spirit and scope of this invention.

We claim:

1. in a printing machine of the character described, a frame supporting a generally horizontally extending shaft, a printing platform pivotally mounted on said shaft, an inking pad, a member pivotally mounted on said shaft, said inking pad being mounted on said member, adjusting means mounted on said frame and engaging the free end of said platform, and second adjusting means between said frame and the free end of said member to adjust the position of said pad, said second adjusting means comprising resilient means between said frame and said member.

2. In a printing machine of the character described, a frame, a shaft mounted on said frame, a printing platform pivotally mounted on said shaft, an inking pad, an inking pad supporting member pivotally mounted on said shaft with the inking pad disposed above and facing the printing platform, a printing plate, a guide structure supporting said plate and arranged to guide said plate from a position adjacent the printing platform to a position adjacent the inking pad, adjustable supporting means arranged to position one end of said printing platform at different elevations, second adjusting means arranged to adjust the height of said inking pad supporting member, said adjusting means including a resilient connection between said inking pad supporting member and said frame, a power driven shaft mounted on said frame, and means connected to said power driven shaft for moving said printing plate from a position adjacent said printing platform to a position adjacent said inking pad.

3. In a printing machine of the character described, a frame, a printing platform pivotally mounted on said frame about a first axis, means for adjusting the free end of said printing platform, a printing plate, an arm pivoted about said first axis, means supporting said printing plate on said arm, and means adjustably and resiliently supporting the free end of said arm.

4. In a printing machine of the character described, a frame, an adjustable printing platform an inking pad, an arm mounting said inking pad, a shaft mounted on said frame, said arm and platform being mounted for pivotal movement about the axis of said shaft, and independently operable adjusting means for adjusting the free ends of said platform and arm with respect to said frame.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,028,821 I-Ioge et a1. June 4, 1912 1,034,606 Franceschini Aug. 6, 1912 1,217,318 Kundert Feb. 27, 1917 1,260,967 Chapman Mar. 28, 1918. 1,325,175 Skerl Dec. 16, 1919 1,340,380 Davis May 18, 1920 1,484,136 Kohnle Feb. 19, 1924 1,696,638 Kallenbaugh Dec. 25, 1928 1,972,850 McCarthy Sept. 4, 1934 2,014,765 Hoppe Sept. 17, 1935 2,080,056 Miller May 11, 1937 2,134,310 McGrath Oct. 25, 1938 2,530,961 Hansen Nov. 21, 1950 

